San Costa motorway disaster
The''' San Costa motorway disaster''' took place on 15 July 2012, when a multiple-vehicle collision occurred on the M83 motorway near San Costa, Leeds, which left twelve people dead and 101 injured. The crash involved 64 vehicles. Accident At 2125 on Sunday 15 July 2012, 64 vehicles were involved in a pile-up on the Home-bound carriageway of the M83 motorway between the junctions for Cardano and San Costa, 2.2 miles south of San Costa town centre. The vehicles included cars, vans, lorries, and oil tankers, some of which (near the back) erupted into a fireball. Flames rose up to 20 feet (6 metres) high. The accident started as a Stobart lorry was hit by a Renault that was changing lanes, and did not see the oncoming Stobart due to poor visibility. The Stobart and Renault then stopped, and the Stobart was hit by a MAN Shell oil tanker at full speed. Several other vehicles were involved in this carnage before the pile-up spread back down the motorway. Twelve people were later confirmed dead, and a further 101 were injured. 26 of the injured were treated at the scene, the rest were taken to San Costa General Hospital. Spare rooms had to be opened at the hospital to cope with demand, with many people being seriously injured, suffering from various multi-system trauma including multiple fractures and chest, abdominal, and lung injuries. Fifteen fire engines from the San Costa branch of the Leeds National Fire & Rescue Department attended. By 0630 on 16 July the emergency services had removed the vehicles from the crash site, but both carriageways of the motorway, between junctions for Cardano and San Costa, remained closed for repair work. The formal identification of the crash fatalities had not yet taken place. A 40-metre stretch of road was damaged by an oil spill, and another 40-metre stretch was damaged by intense fire. One lane of the Leeds-bound carriageway re-opened early on 16 July, while the rest remained closed. Vehicles involved The vast majority of the vehicles involved were cars. However, also in the crash were six lorries (Stobart, Malcolm, TNT, Iceland, Sainsbury's, and an Andrew's Wastesavers), and three oil tankers (a Shell near the front, an Esso near the middle, and a BP, which started a fire, near the back). Miracle on 32212 Leeds Buses Scania Olympus 32212 narrowly avoided the accident. While on the N10 bus route (unusual for a double-decker to be on the N10 - however it was a replacement for a bus that had broken down), it was passing down the motorway at the site of the accident when it saw fires raging ahead. Confused, the driver continued, before noticing the vehicles. With not enough time to brake, the Olympus swerved, mounted the central reservation, crossed it, and came to a halt on the other carriageway, which was deserted as it had already been closed due to a bin lorry fire. Luckily, although the central reservation usually has a barrier that would have destroyed the bus, the driver managed to expertly manouver it through a tight gap in between two barriers. There were no injuries on the bus - although the driver was treated for shock - and policemen lead the passengers to safety. The bus suffered minor damage to the front and rear bumpers and suspension, due to mounting the bumpy central reservation at such high speed. It was towed back to the depot for repairs. Aftermath and reaction One of the lorries involved was an Eddie Stobart, on the way back from one of the company's first ever deliveries in Leeds. The front of the Stobart Scania was crushed when it was hit by a Shell oil tanker; the driver was killed instantly. Due to severe damage down one side and to the cab, Stobart wrote off the lorry. Further behind, a Malcolm lorry swerved to try and avoid the pile-up, and ended up on it's side in a ditch. The driver was severely injured, but taken to hospital where he recovered. The Volvo lorry was recovered and sent for repairs. One eyewitness described the scene of the crash as a "horrific accident", there were "a number of explosions and fires", also saying that "it was not something you expect to see on the motorway, it was more like something out of Afghanistan". Investigation Initially, an assistant chief officer told reporters that it was feared more bodies were trapped in burnt-out cars. However, an overnight forensic operation found no further fatalities. An investigation was launched on 16 July. Police said that the cause of the crash was poor visibility. The poor visibility in turn was caused by smoke drifting across the carriageway from a fierce fire on a bin lorry on the Leeds-bound carriageway (which was closed as a result of the fire). An anonymous report reccommended that the current fog warning system, consisting of electronic signs above the carriageway, be upgraded to automatic. Currently it is manual, being activated when a police officer sends a report of fog to the control room. On the night of the crash, no such reports were sent in, so the warning signs were not switched on. It was reccommended that they become automatic in future.